命いのちあっての物もの種だね

Meanings

while there is life, there is hope; don't waste your life

Proverb emphasizing that life itself is the foundation for everything; as long as you are alive, you can achieve something, so you should not risk your life recklessly.

命いのちあっての物もの種だねだから、無む理りな挑ちょう戦せんはやめておこう。
Since life is the foundation of everything, let's not attempt anything reckless.
彼かれは「命いのちあっての物もの種だね」と言いって、危き険けんな仕し事ごとを断ことわった。
He declined the dangerous job, saying, 'While there is life, there is hope.'

Kanji

命fate, command, decree
物thing, object, matter
種species, kind, class
有possess, have, exist

Related words

命いのちは地ち球きゅうより重おもい
A more modern, emphatic expression meaning 'life is heavier than the Earth,' stressing the absolute value of life, while 命あっての物種 is a traditional proverb focusing on life as the prerequisite for all endeavors.

Built from

命いのち+あっての+物もの種だね

Written forms

命いのちあっての物もの種だね
Standard kanji spelling for this proverb.
命いのちあってのもの種だね
Variant spelling using kana for もの.
命いのち有あっての物もの種だね
Rare variant using 有 for あ.

Etymology

A traditional Japanese proverb. The exact origin is uncertain, but it has been used for centuries to convey the idea that life is the most fundamental asset.